The secret gift for October 14th secret prize  and the winner are about to be announced.  BUT….before I do that, don’t forget to vote in the Boobie Bake off  It is for a good cause, raising money for breast cancer research.Now…on to the Blogtoberfest Secret Prize winner and reveal…

The secret prize is ..oh this is so cool…I really wish I could win it….Channel your inner Donna Reed with this …. “Deni” apron. Handsewn with love, this apron features five panels and a fan pocket of vintage fabrics. Winner may chose red or fuschia. APRONISMS: Pocket Wisdom for Every Day offers down-home-spun, no-nonsense wisdom that is tinged with humor. Perfectly sized to fit in your apron pocket.

This is a 60.00 apron and you get to choose between two colors. I LOVE this..

Is that cool? You know it is! Special thanks to our Sponsor,  Ellyn Anne!  Her site, Apron Memories is awesome..check it out!

O.k..so now..what you have been waiting for…yep …the winner….of the cool apron…is….

Hugette E.

Congrats!

Post from: Baking Delights

So, honestly, I always run late for events but I do eventually get them done.  Tomorrow is the third Wednesday of the month and the date for the monthly exaltation of the humble, yet lovable, potato.  The Potato Ho Down.

Sonnets could be written.  Operas could be sung.  Why aren’t they, you ask? Because as soon as people think about writing a sonnet to the potato they get hungry.  Then they have to fix it..then they have to eat it…then they have to clean up…then it is bed time.

So, yes, the potato is destined to be the unsung hero of the tuber world.  Sad, isn’t it?

This months event is hosted by Hillary of  Chew On That Blog. Head over there to find even MORE potato recipes.

Duchess Grace’s Southwestern Potatoes

4 lbs of organic potatoes, peeled and diced

1/2 lbs bacon

1 onion, peeled and chopped

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped

1 to 2 jalapenos chopped (or chipotle)

1 pound of organic frozen corn

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded

Chop the bacon and add it to a large saute pan.  Cook for  a few minutes until the fat starts to cover the pan bottom and then add the potatoes, onions, jalapeno, cumin, chili, and garlic.  Add a little olive oil if necessary to keep the mixture form sticking.

Saute over medium heat, stirring often, until potatoes are tender but not squishy.Add corn and cook until heated through.

Sprinkle with cilantro and cheese.

Serves 8

Surprise! It is your lucky day because this is ALSO a super secret blogtoberfest prize post!!!!!

This is a Blogtoberfest Sponsored Post. If you would like to enter for a chance to win the surprise gift behind this blog post, please leave a comment. Prize and Winner will be announced within a week. Check back to see if you’re the lucky winner and what you’ve won!

You also have lots of chances to win great Blogtoberfest prizes! Today, October 14, your chances (and prizes) are hiding at the following blogs: a child chosen, babylune, unplugged living, blog fabulous, busy family meals, drinks after dark, genbetween, jewelry and beading, keeping the castle, mother earths garden, play library, she knows parties, solomother, supernannyrules. Visit them all and leave a comment — you may win even more!

Image:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

Monday’s secret prize is a Search the Cure Stationary Caddie provided by Crane & Co., the nation’s leading stationery company.

$2 per box will be donated by Crane & Co. to a breast cancer awareness organization. The caddies contain 25 pearl white correspondence cards with a pink ribbon icon at the top. Coordinating pink mist envelopes are included, and the package is wrapped with a pink ribbon.

The winner of Monday’s Blogtoberfest secret prize on Baking Delights is:

Here are your random numbers:

138	

Timestamp: 2008-10-11 15:11:47 UTC

Jodene Gildea, who was comment number #138!

Jodene, I have emailed you and you have 3 days to get back to me or another number will be drawn.

Congratulations!

Post from: Baking Delights

Well, Pat and Andrea came through for me, and after much deliberation have decided to share their recipe for plum cake.

My European readers will be thrilled because the measurements are in grams.

This is not a sweet cake.  We were talking about how Europeans generally use much less sweetening that Americans do.  In fact, we had this for breakfast and it was perfect.  Andrea says that you absolutely MUST use the Italian prune plums that are available (in our area at least) only during the first part of October.. So don’t wait too long to try this recipe out!

I have shamelessly pasted it just the way that they sent it to me…because…well…I can.  I did make two small changes.  I specified unsalted butter, and I took out the reference to the ability to substitute margarine for butter…Don’t do it. Margarine is…the DEVIL I tell ya…bad, bad, bad for you.

Andrea and Pat’s OLD EUROPEAN STYLE PLUM CAKE
* Sieve 500 grams flour into a mixing bow. Preferably flour types: High Altitude Hungarian Flour ®, or Gold Medal All Purpose ®.
* Add 1 packet dried yeast and mix carefully with the flour
* Add 75 grams sugar
* Add 1 packet of vanilla sugar, or 1 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
* Pinch of salt
* 250 ml (1/4 liter) lukewarm milk
* 75-100 grams melted, or cool unsalted butter
Directions
Mix the ingredients for a moment, using the kneading attachment on an electric mixer and a low setting. Switch to high and knead thoroughly for 5 minutes. If the dough is sticky, add a little extra flour (just a little as the dough should remain soft).
Cover the dough and leave to rise in a warm place until it is well risen. Remove the risen dough from the bowl and knead it thoroughly on a work surface. (In the unlikely event that the dough seems overly firm, pick it up and body slam it! Really, I mean slam it on the work surface!) Afterwards, roll the dough out on a greased baking sheet.
* 3 kg (3-4 lbs) of Italian Plums – wash, drain, dry and stone (do not cut through the plums, you want them to fan)
* Arrange the plums like scales on the dough, with the cut surfaces facing upwards. (The plums should be arranged tightly where little dough is visible.)
* Leave the dough in a warm place until it is well risen.

Baking
Electric

Conventional:200-225 Celsius (400-450˚ F) [preheated]
Convection<170 Celsius (350˚F) [cold]
Gas4-5 [preheated]
Baking Time:20-30 minutes (ovens vary; baking may require up to 50 minutes)
POI: Plums will emit juices that will cover the dough
Allow the cake to cool off before serving
Special Ingredients:Serve with a sprinkle of sugar

This contest is over and the winner has been drawn… comments have been closed. But check back…there are more secret prizes to come!

Now, Guess what?  This post is a Blogtoberfest Sponsored post! What does that mean? Well, you need to first leave a comment to be eligible to win the very COOL secret prize.  The winner will be announced in a few days so be sure to check back! Other blogs with sponsored posts today are:

• A Child Chosen
• Babylune
• Blog Fabulous
• Chocolate Bites
• Declutter It
• Inside Motherhood
• Keeping the Castle
• MomGadget
• Noodles and Rice
• Simply Home Remedies
• Tangled Thread
• Weary Parent

Each of these blogs will be offering a giveaway so be sure to leave a comment on the post that specifies that it is a SPONSORED post.  Some of the blogs may not have posted yet so if it doesn’t say sponsored check back!

Good luck!

Don’t forget the Boobie Bakeoff!!

Images:Marye Audet

Post from: Baking Delights

October is traditionally an exciting month for b5media’s Lifestyles Channel and their readers. Summer is over and the Holidays have not yet begun, so it is the perfect time for us to thank our readers for their continued loyalty.

To do this, the Lifestyles Channel joins forces with hundreds of sponsors to create a two week extravaganza of giveaways, jump-starting the holiday season and allowing our readers to win gifts, both for themselves and for giving.

This year’s Blogtoberfest is better than ever before. We have simplified the process and the sponsors have been extremely generous in the gifts that they are offering and as the result, we’ll be passing on in excess of $7,000 worth of prizes.

Don’t miss a minute of the fun!

Blogtoberfest officially kicks off Monday, October 6, 2008

There are lots of great prizes to be given away. Prizes are available to U.S. and Canada residents unless otherwise noted.

All you have to do is:

1. Browse the channel or visit your favorite blogs
2. Watch for sponsored prize winning posts wearing the official Blogtoberfest button shown above.
3. Leave a comment on that exact post. Your comment IS your entry.
4. Check back with that blog within a week and see what the prize is and if you’re the lucky winner.

Consider subscribing to the various blog feeds to make sure you don’t miss out on any exciting opportunities. Many blogs will be conducting between 2 and 7 giveaways and just where those will be appearing is a secret and half the fun!

Each prize winning post will share links to other prize winning blogs for that same day. This makes hunting easier and improves your chances of winning!

That’s it!

Participating blogs found at the bottom of our channel hub:

www.b5media.com/channels_lifestyles.html

A special thanks to Randa Clay Design for our beautiful Blogtoberfest Button!

Post from: Baking Delights

From October 6 – 17th, we’ll be hosting our Second Annual Lifestyles Channel Blogtoberfest.

We’re planning to run this event for two weeks during the month of October (or until the prizes run out). During that two weeks, we’ll be giving away some amazing prizes.

We’ve already come up with a few prizes of our own by way of previous product reviews, public relations contacts and more to give to readers but would like to supplement them with some other prizes and gifts from sponsors interested in being a part of this event where they could get a little attention and we can reward our loyal readers.

If you’d like to participate by offering a prize (in return for a little publicity throughout our channel) please email Gayla with the following information in the following format:

1. email gayla AT b5media DOT com (substitute AT and DOT with the appropriate @ and .)
2. make the subject line ‘BLOGTOBERFEST PRIZE’
3. describe the prize you would like to offer (what is it and it’s value)
4. include a link to the prize if you have one – if not, a company website would be fine.
5. include your name, the link to the site you’d like us to link to in return for your prize and a graphic you’d like us to use along with your mention.

NOTE: While we would like to include as many prizes as possible – however, we won’t be able to accept every offer for whatever reason. We’d like to encourage prizes that are in line with at least one of our blogs content – so our readers will benefit the fullest from their participation.

Also note that our channel has an international audience and prizes need to be able to be received by readers around the world so please factor in that you’ll need to pay for any shipping if it’s won by an international reader unless otherwise specified or earmarked for specific distribution only.

Prize submissions will be accepted until Tuesday September 30th.

Prize Suggestions: Cash or gift certificates are always a plus, gadgets and random fun things. Electronics, books, memberships, toys and just about anything that is “suitable” to at least one of our blogs.

We’d rather keep this event unique, so things like ‘hosting packages’, services and ‘ebooks’ aren’t going to exactly be relevant to participants. The more fun and creative the contribution the better (and value is a real plus).

What do you get in return?

You’ll be getting promotion in return for your prize on a number of pages/posts throughout the entire channel that yields a high number of visitors daily and monthly. Historically, once a contest of this magnitude is underway, you’ll probably get linked to from other blogs also as these events cause quite a stir around the blogosphere.

You will be guaranteed at least 2 links from every participating blog in the channel and multiple links from the blogs you sponsor for each prize you sponsor.

Example: One sponsor contributes 4 prizes, that’s 4 blogs that provide multiple links to your product website along with the channel wide promotion posts.

The better the prize the more attention you’ll get!

Now, let’s see just how creative some of you can be!

Post from: Baking Delights